Final Exam

Between the 1950s and the 1990s, the average age of retirement ____

decreased

In recent years, poverty among the old has been ___ while poverty among the young people has been __

decreasing, increasing

A majority of workers in the united states are covered by pensions plans

false

When did congress recognize that social security could no longer operate in the future as a purely pay as you go system?

In the 1980s

The poverty rate is highest among which of the following groups?

children under 18 years old

Which of the following do the term tweeners refer to?

economically insecure older adults who are not poor enough to qualify for means-tested programs

According to Ekerdt, workers nearing retirement show a decreased level of commitment to work and observance of values about work

false

According to multiple AARP surveys, most boomers plan to retire before the age of 65 because they no longer wish to work or because they have the savings to support themselves while not working

false

Caro,Bass and chen argue that chronological age is a strong predictor of performance in physical and mental activities

false

One criticism of social security is that benefits do not keep pace with inflation

false

Research has demonstrated that retirement is bad for older adults' health and that they often die soon after leaving the workforce

false

The affordable care act of 2010 extended health insurance benefits to all US citizens, creating "Medicare for all"

false

The boomer cohort is extremely homogeneous, making it easy to objectively characterize it

false

Which of the following will shape the impact of aging on the baby boomer cohort?

all of the above

which of the following factors contribute to the long-term deficit in social security, according to Diamond and Orszag?

all of the above

Social Security was never intended to be the sole source of income for people in retirement

true

The "baby bust" generation does not have enough workers to contribute promised benefits to other "baby boomers" generation upon its retirment

true

The average condition of older Americans has improved markedly in recent decades when measured according to income, health status, and educational level

true

The employment retirement income security act (ERISA) of 1974 regulates private pension plans in the united states and provides protection against loss of benefit to retired workers

true

The highest rates are found among older women, minorities, and those with chronic illnesses

true

Thompson argues that the age increase from 65 to 67 in the social security program will cause more benefits to fall below minimally adequate levels of support

true

When considering any cohort, such as the boomers, it is important to keep in mind not only age, period and cohort effects, but the impact of class, ethnicity and gender as well in shaping individual experiences

true

When the supplement Poverty Measure (SPM), an experimental income-based method that takes into account more factors than does the official poverty level calculation, is used the poverty rate for older adults is higher

true

What are events that influence groups of people during the same years, such as the influence of World War II on the GI generation?

Cohort Effects

The income threshold for taxing social security benefits for individuals is __

$25,000

Mandatory retirement was abolished by law in __

1986

According to McArdle, when the boomers are fully retired, there will be how many workers per retiree?

2 workers per 1 retiree

In what year did the oldest baby boomer turn age 65?

2011

The most recent reports from the trustees of the social security system expects the system to be able to pay full benefits until ___, and after that, pay 80% of benefits, even if nothing is done to change the system

2034

More than half of older people in the united states depend on social security for more than ___ percent of their income

50

Retirement income for older women is about ___ percent of that for men

55

According to the reading by Thurow, reducing government support for older adults so that they must rely on more of their own resources may have which of the following effects?

A and B

Controversies around Social Security focus on which of the following questions

A and B

For which of the following reasons does Samuelson disagree with Burless's analysis about governmental spending for older adults

A and B

Which of the following solutions do Diamond and Orzag propose to address the effect of earnings inequality in social security

A and B

which of the following is an example of a cohort?

A and B

What proportions of the US population do Boomers make up:?

About one quarter

Which law forbade older workers from being limited or treated in any way that would harm their employment possibilities?

Age discrimination in employment act of 1967

According to Burtless, government spending on older adults continues to climb for which of the following reasons?

B and C

In the story, Boomsday, which of the following does "transitioning" refer to

Opting to be legally euthanized in return for huge tax breaks and subsides

People of all ages were affected by the expansion and availability of the internet in the 1990s. This is an example of what kind of effect

Period effect

____ introduced age 65 as the basis for retirement pensions

Prussian Chancellor, Otto Von Bismark

In the store, Boomsday, what does the "perfect economic storm" refer to?

Seventy-seven million people retiring during a time of economic crisis

The "two worlds of aging" refer to which of the following?

The categorization of older adults into two broad groups, the "ill-derly" and the "well-derly"

Social class position in old age is influenced by which of the following?

all of the above

In the essay by McArdle, what does the analogy "like watching a pig move through a python" refer to?

The movement of the huge boomer cohort from the childhood through adulthood and into old age

The support ratio, or dependency ratio, refers to

The numerical measure of the number of persons in the labor force compared to the number of persons not in the work force

The "sex ratio" refers to which of the following?

The proportion of men and women in the population

Which of the following is a major problem with the social security according to Ponnuru?

When benefits paid out begin to exceed revenues, the government will have to find money to pay off the IOUs in the trust fund

During the 20th century, free time increased in all of the following ways except through

a reduction of the work week

"productive aging" as defined by Caro, Bass, and Chen, includes which of the following activities?

all of the above

According to Ekerdt, individuals who uphold the "busy ethic" include which of the following

all of the above

Freedman is baffled that older americans do not do more volunteering for which of the following reasons?

all of the above

Older people tend to have ___ wealth than younger people and ___ incomes compared to other adults in the united states

more, lower

"net worth" consists of which of the following

real estate, savings, and personal property, minus any debt

Which of the following is the largest source of income for people over the age 65 in the united states today?

social security

The "Three-legged stool" of retirement income includes which of the following?

social security, private pensions, and savings

The greater likelihood of poverty among women in old age is called which of the following?

the feminization of poverty

What happens to the surplus payroll taxes generated by social security

the surplus money is used to buy US treasury notes

According to Manheimer, people who choose to retire creatively should first be concerned with what gives them satisfaction

true

According to McArdle, the next 20 years will require a transfer of resources away from the care of children to the care of older people

true

According to Ponnuru, even if economic growth doubled, social security would still become insolvent if nothing is done to change the programs benefit structure

true

According to the American Time Use Survey retirees spend more than half their leisure time watching television

true

Among the oldest boomers there is not a insignificant proportion who are working part or full time and collecting social security benefits

true

Burtless suggests that it is misleading to focus solely on federal spending for older adults

true

Of 13.3 million non-institutional older adults living alone in 2015, the majority were women

true

Out-of Pocket medical expenses contribute to the economic insecurity of many older adults

true

Rising rates of poverty among children in the united states are higher than those of every industrialized country in the world

true

Roszak asserts that the boomer generation wil change the meaning of old age that will constitute a different kind of older population

true

Since the 1980s, the income of older people in the united states has grown faster than the income of younger people

true